Employee Engagement Manager

Purpose of the Role:

Manager/ Associate Director Employee Engagement, Experience & Communications will lead the design, execution and continuous enhancement of the Company's employee engagement, recognition, experience and internal people communication agenda across all entities, Service Lines and locations. The role will translate the Company's people strategy and Employee Value Proposition into meaningful employee experiences, differentiated engagement initiatives and clear, consistent and impactfull communication. It will drive a structured, insight-led approach to employee listening, strengthen leadership accountability for engagement outcomes, and establish robust governance, analytics and measurement mechanisms. The role requires a combination of strategic thinking, communication excellence, collaboration capabilities, programe management, analytical orientation, stakeholder influence and execution excellence, with the ability to drive outcomes effectively in a complex, multi-location professional services environment.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Employee Engagement Strategy & Programme Management

• Develop and drive the pan-India employee engagement strategy and annual engagement calendar, aligned with the Company's priorities and the people agenda.
• Conceptualise, design and implement differentiated engagement initiatives across entities, Service Lines, Enabling functions and locations.
• Develop inclusive and relevant interventions tailored to business and/or regional requirements, workforce demographics, career stages and employee segments.
• Lead end-to-end execution of employee engagement & connect initiatives, including planning, stakeholder alignment, facilitation, communication, follow-through and impact assessment through regular feedback and surveys.
• Collaborate with HR Business Partners, business leaders, functional teams and other relevant stakeholders to ensure engagement initiatives address employee needs and business realities.
• Continuously evaluate engagement practices and introduce innovative approaches to strengthen employee connection, belonging, collaboration and organisational culture.

2. Employee Connect Programmes, Pulse Surveys & Action Planning

• Conceptualise, plan and drive a structured calendar of leadership and employee connect initiatives, including organisation-wide town halls, quarterly/annual leadership connects, business updates, employee forums, fireside chats, skip-level interactions and open-house sessions.
• Own the end-to-end planning and execution of town halls and leadership connect forums, including agenda development, content curation for the CHRO on culture and people initiatives, speaker coordination, event management, feedback and post-event communication.
• Create opportunities for two-way dialogue through interactive Q&A sessions, live polls, employee questions, leadership interactions, enabling employees to seek clarity and share perspectives directly with leadership.
• Drive location-wise, Service Line-wise and cross functional connects to ensure employees across levels and geographies have equitable access to resources, knowledge sharing and relevant organisational updates.
• Curate engaging employee-focused segments such as success stories, business achievements, employee spotlights, recognition moments, milestone celebrations and leadership appreciation.
• Establish mechanisms to capture employee questions, feedback and key discussion points during connect programmes, ensuring appropriate follow-through and closure in collaboration with relevant stakeholders.
• Monitor participation, employee feedback and programme effectiveness to continuously enhance the quality, relevance and impact of leadership and employee connect initiatives.
• Drive & own the complete employee listening and Pulse survey program, including survey design, vendor coordination, communication, participation drives, administration, analysis and reporting.
• Develop strategies to maximise participation and ensure representation across locations, Service Lines, grades and employee segments.
• Analyse survey findings to identify key engagement drivers, emerging themes, risks and opportunities, and translate insights into actionable recommendations.
• Facilitate the communication of survey findings & results to relevant leaders and support the development of structured, measurable action plans.
• Establish a robust mechanism to track and monitor action-plan commitments, progress, outcomes and closure.
• Hold Service Line Heads, Enabling Function Heads, HRBPs, L&D and other stakeholders accountable for agreed actions through structured reviews, dashboards and escalation mechanisms.
• Monitor the effectiveness of interventions through subsequent pulse checks, employee feedback and relevant engagement metrics.
• Ensure confidentiality and responsible handling of employee feedback, communication and survey data.

3. Recognition & Appreciation Programmes

• Design & own and continuously enhance pan-India employee recognition programmes in line with the Company's recognition philosophy, values & culture and people priorities.
• Develop differentiated recognition initiatives that reinforce desired behaviours, celebrate meaningful contributions and foster a culture of appreciation.
• Establish consistent programme frameworks, eligibility criteria, nomination processes, governance, approval mechanisms and communication standards across Service Lines and locations.
• Strengthen both formal recognition programmes & informal, timely appreciation practices.
• Partner with business leaders and HRBPs to drive leadership participation and embed recognition into the employee experience.
• Monitor programme reach, participation, representation, utilisation, employee feedback and perceived impact.
• Evaluate programme effectiveness and recommend improvements based on data, employee insights, industrys best practices in line with evolving organisational needs.

4. Employee Communication Strategy & Content Governance

• Develop & own the internal employee communication strategy for HR & people related matters, ensuring timely, consistent, relevant & impactfull communication.
• Develop and maintain an integrated communication calendar covering HR initiatives, policy changes, organisational announcements, leadership messages, compensation and benefits communication, employee programmes and change initiatives.
• Draft, review or shape communications for sensitive matters, including restructuring, role changes, policy revisions, surveys, new initiatives launch which falls under HRs purview and other organisational developments.
• Partner with Legal and relevant stakeholders for review of communications involving legal, regulatory, employee-relations or other material sensitivities.
• Establish communication standards, tone of voice, messaging principles and quality benchmarks for all employee communications issued under the HR function.
• Review and provide editorial oversight for key HR communications, leadership messages, employee announcements, emailers, presentations and other communication materials.
• Ensure communications are appropriately targeted to relevant employee groups, with clear messaging, suitable channels and defined calls to action.
• Partner with Corporate Communications to ensure adherence to internal communication policies, approval protocols, brand guidelines and the communication classification and responsibility matrix.
• Develop communication toolkits and manager cascades to support consistent interpretation and communication of people initiatives across the organisation.
• Evaluate communication effectiveness through reach, readership, engagement, employee feedback and other relevant measures.

5. Employee Experience & Employee Value Proposition

• Lead the introduction, articulation and embedding of the BDO People Value Proposition across the employee lifecycle in line with BDO Global s People Value Proposition.
• Translate the proposition into a compelling employee narrative supported by relevant programmes, experiences, leadership messaging and communication campaigns.
• Collaborate with HR, Talent Acquisition, L&D, business leaders and Corporate Communications to integrate the proposition into recruitment, onboarding, development, recognition, performance, career and retention initiatives.
• Conceptualise and implement distinctive employee experience initiatives that bring the proposition to life.
• Drive awareness, understanding and adoption of the proposition across employee groups, locations and leadership levels.
• Define relevant metrics to assess awareness, adoption, employee perception and programme effectiveness.
• Provide periodic progress updates, insights and recommendations to the Global BDO People Committee and other relevant leadership forums, as required.

6. Programme Governance, Analytics & Leadership Reporting

• Establish robust governance frameworks for employee engagement, employee listening, recognition and people communication initiatives.
• Develop annual calendars, programe trackers, responsibility matrices, review mechanisms and escalation protocols to ensure consistent implementation.
• Define and monitor key performance indicators covering participation, reach, coverage, employee sentiment, action-plan closure, recognition effectiveness and communication engagement.
• Build consolidated dashboards and management reports providing visibility into progress, outcomes, risks, implementation gaps and opportunities for improvement.
• Provide location-wise, Service Line-wise and employee-segment insights to identify variations in employee experience and prioritize interventions.
• Present data driven insights and recommendations to HR leadership, business leaders and other governance forums in a clear, evidence-based and actionable manner.
• Drive continuous improvement through employee feedback, analytics, external benchmarks and programe outcomes to refine interventions.

7. Budget, Vendor & Resource Management

• Develop and manage annual budgets for employee engagement, recognition, surveys and related communication initiatives.
• Ensure effective resource allocation, cost discipline, expenditure tracking and optimal utilisation of budgets.
• Identify opportunities to enhance programme effectiveness through innovative, technology-enabled and cost-efficient solutions.
• Identify, onboard and manage external vendors, survey partners, consultants, creative agencies and subject matter experts, as required.
• Define deliverables and service expectations, monitor vendor performance and ensure quality, timeliness and value for money.
• Collaborate with vendors and internal procurement, finance, admin and other stakeholders for effective programme delivery.

8. Stakeholder Management & Cross-functional Collaboration

• Act as the central point of contact for pan-India employee engagement, recognition and employee communication initiatives.
• Build effective partnerships with Service Line Heads, Enabling Function Heads, HRBPs, L&D, Corporate Communications, Legal, Talent Acquisition and other relevant teams.
• Influence senior stakeholders to prioritise employee experience, act on employee feedback and deliver agreed engagement commitments.
• Drive alignment and consistency across entities and locations while accommodating relevant regional & business specific requirements.
• Facilitate collaboration, knowledge sharing and adoption of effective practices across the HR function.
• Represent the employee engagement and communication agenda in leadership reviews, governance forums and relevant global or regional discussions.

Critical Competencies Requirement:

• Strategic orientation
• Executive communication
• Stakeholder influence
• Analytical orientation
• Strong planning, prioritisation, execution and governance capabilities
• Business acumen
• Creativity and Innovation
• Confidentiality, Ownership & Accountability
• Execution excellence

Collaboration